June 23, 2008
Monday

Ketchikan,, Alaska - Ketchikan will host 100+ representatives from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Alaska for the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) Annual Western Region Conference September 18-19, 2008. The conference will be held at the Ted Ferry Civic Center. The Ketchikan Visitors Bureau estimates the conference will have a local economic impact of $99,200.

The Medical Reserve Corps, sponsored by the office of the U.S. Surgeon General, is an organization of public health, medical, and other volunteers dedicated to the health and safety of communities across the nation.

Information provided by the Medical Reserve Corps on their website said MRC units are community-based and function as a way to locally organize and utilize volunteers who want to donate their time and expertise to prepare for and respond to emergencies and promote healthy living throughout the year. MRC volunteers supplement existing emergency and public health resources.

MRC volunteers can choose to support communities in need nationwide. When the southeast was battered by hurricanes in 2004, MRC volunteers in the affected areas and beyond helped communities by filling in at local hospitals, assisting their neighbors at local shelters, and providing first aid to those injured by the storms. During this 2-month period, more than 30 MRC units worked as part of the relief efforts, including those whose volunteers were called in from across the country to assist the American Red Cross (ARC) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) according to information provided on the Medical Reserve Corps website.

Ketchikan is establishing its own chapter of the Medical Reserve Corps. Hosting the Western Region Conference provides the opportunity to network with MRC volunteers throughout the Pacific Northwest. In the event of a statewide, regional or community disaster, Northwest MRC volunteers would come to aid providing medical and disaster assistance. The main goal of the Ketchikan chapter is Emergency Preparedness, followed by collaboration with community partners. The community partners program is still being developed.

The Western Region Conference is made possible through the support of the Ketchikan Fire Department, Ketchikan Visitors Bureau, Ketchikan Public Health, Ketchikan Indian Community Tribal Health, and many individual volunteers.

Interested organizations, groups, or individual volunteers can contact Nora Tombaugh in Ketchikan at 254-4488, Rupert Henry at rthree@kpunet.net or Jim Hill at jimh@city.ketchikan.ak.us

On the Web:

The Medical Reserve Corps
www.medicalreservecorps.gov

 

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